Small-sided games vs. interval training in amateur soccer players: effects on the aerobic capacity and the ability to perform intermittent exercises with changes of direction.

Small-sided games vs. interval training in amateur soccer players: effects on the aerobic capacity and the ability to perform intermittent exercises with changes of direction.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of small-sided soccer games (SSG) versus high-intensity intermittent runs (HIT) training on an aerobic continuous test (Vameval) and the performance in an intermittent test including changes of direction (30-15IFT). Twenty-two amateur soccer players (age: 26.3±4.7 years,) were assigned to 3 different groups for 6-week: SSG group (n=8), HIT group (n=8), and control group (CG, n=6). In addition to usual technical and tactical sessions and competitive games, the SSG group performed 9 sessions of 2 vs. 2 and 1 vs. 1 SSG, while the HIT group performed 9 sessions of 30s-30s, 15s-15s and 10s-10s intermittent runs. HIT and SSG groups showed improvements of the performance in the aerobic continuous Vameval test (respectively +5.1% and +6.6%) and the 30-15IFT intermittent test including changes of direction(respectively +5.1% and +5.8%) while there was no change in CG. Players from HIT and SSG groups presented similar increase of their performance in the 30-15IFT and in the Vameval performance during the 6-week training, with especially an increase significantly different to a traditional training as the control group (p<0.05). This investigation demonstrates that both high SSG and HIT interventions are equally effective in developing the aerobic capacity and the ability to perform intermittent exercises including changes of direction in male amateur soccer players. Furthermore, this two method of training applied during 6 weeks induce similar effect on the recovery capacity and on the ability to repeated directional changes of 180°. Coaches are now able to make a choice between these methods according to the objective of the training and to optimize the training.